Friday, October 31, 2014

Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad says absolute equality between men and women is a "stupid idea" as there are inherent differences among them.

"Today, Islam is faced with the idea that men and women should be equal.

"There are differences between men and women, physically and
mentally, so it would be a stupid idea to suggest that all women do what
men do and all men do what women do," he told the audience at the
International Islamic Forum here on Friday.

Dr Mahathir said Muslims should be prepared to defend their stand
that there is no such thing as absolute equality between the sexes.

"There can be equality when it comes to becoming the Prime Minister, but not in other matters," he said.

Dr Mahathir had said on Thursday that there was no law to prohibit a woman from becoming PM.

He also said that Malaysian men were becoming lazy as more women had
successfully entered institutions of higher learning and earned higher
salaries than their male counterparts.

This had led to many women being forced to marry men with lesser qualifications than them, he was quoted as saying.

The final appeal for Opposition leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to set aside his five-year jail sentence for sodomising his former aide Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, began Tuesday.

A five-member panel led by Chief Justice Tun Arifin Zakaria will hear
submissions from Anwar’s defence team of 14 lawyers led by former
Federal Court judge Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram.

The other judges on the panel are Court of Appeal president Tan Sri
Md Raus Shariff and Federal Court judges Tan Sri Abdull Hamid Embong,
Tan Sri Suriyadi Halim Omar and Datuk Ramly Ali.
The court will also hear the prosecution’s cross appeal to increase the jail sentence imposed on Anwar, 67.

Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah is leading the prosecution team.

He is assisted by deputy public prosecutor Datuk Mohamad Hanafiah Zakaria.

Wearing a black suit, Anwar arrived in court at 8.55am, accompanied
by his wife PKR president Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail and their
children, including Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah.
The courtroom was packed with local and foreign press, as well as members of the public.

On Jan 9, 2012, the High Court acquitted and discharged Anwar of
sodomising Mohd Saiful, 27, on grounds that the court could not be 100%
certain on the integrity of samples taken for DNA testing from the
alleged victim.

The court had ruled that the samples could have been compromised before they reached the chemistry department for analysis.

However, on March 7 this year, the Court of Appeal overturned the
high court’s judgement and found Anwar guilty of sodomising Mohd Saiful.

The Court of Appeal held that the trial judge had erred in his
findings about the samples which were based on the evidence of two
expert witnesses called by the defence.

Anwar was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for the offence
allegedly committed at Unit 11-5-1 Kondominium Desa Damansara, Jalan
Setiakasih in Bukit Damansara between 3.10pm and 4.30pm on June 26,
2008.

The charge under Section 377B of the Penal Code, carries a jail term of up to 20 years and whipping, upon conviction.

This is the second sodomy case against Anwar.

In the first case, he was found guilty of sodomising his family’s
driver, Azizan Abu Bakar, at Tivoli Villa here in 1994, and was
sentenced to nine years’ jail by the High Court on Aug 8, 2000.

The court ordered him to serve the sentence after the completion of
his six-year jail term for corruption; Anwar was found guilty of four
charges of corruption on April 4, 1999.

After spending nearly six years in jail for corruption, he was released
on Sept 2, 2004, after the Federal Court led by Justice Tun Abdul Hamid
Mohamad, who went on to become the Chief Justice, overturned his
conviction and set aside Anwar’s jail sentence on the sodomy charge, in a
2-1 majority decision.

Traffic was already building up at the university's Kuala Lumpur and
Petaling Jaya gates around 11am, as cars without official UM stickers
were stopped and questioned by campus security.

The Damansara gate near the Kerinchi Link toll booth was closed. This
was in stark contrast to just three hours earlier when vehicles were
freely allowed to enter the campus.

Earlier at 7am, guards posted at the Petaling Jaya gate on Jalan
Gasing scarcely looked at vehicles streaming in (motorists regularly use
the campus as a "shortcut" between Petaling Jaya and Brickfields).

It was reported on Sunday that the university would supposedly be in a
lockdown, with all its entrances except the main gate to be shut by
4pm, over a student event with Anwar that is set to take place at 9pm.

It was also reported that the police would allegedly handle the university's security from 7am onwards.

However, UM sources and the police subsequently denied these reports,
saying that neither parties’ had plans nor knowledge of the lockdown.

As of 12.30pm, it appeared to be a calm and regular day at the UM campus, with no police personnel in sight.

Located on the third floor of the Komtar Johor Baru City
Centre (JBCC) shopping mall here, its tickets will be priced at RM75 per
entry.

MyKad or MyKid holders, however, are charged RM60.

There will be also be special passes such as those for
families. Children below 10 years old must be accompanied by an adult at
all times while at the park.

It will be opened from 10am to 10pm daily.

The 26,000sq ft park, which has a gross development value of RM17mil, is South-
East Asia’s first indoor Angry Birds Activity Park.

Johor
Corporation president and group chief executive Datuk Kamaruzzaman Abu
Kassim said the park was targetting about 150,000 visitors in its first
year of operations.

He said the park offered an alternative for
visitors who were looking for family-oriented entertainment and not just
shopping outlets.

“We believe we can exceed the target and even
hit the 200,000th visitor count as our sales partners have committed
some 40,000 tickets. The response has been encouraging,” he told
reporters after the preview session here yesterday.

The park is a
joint venture with the game’s founder Finland-based Rovio Entertainment
Ltd to let visitors enjoy themselves through interactive and
educational activities.

Rovio’s director of sales and
relationships Jonna Nummela expressed her delight with the partnership
with JBCC in their first South-East Asia venture and commended their
attention to detail to stay true to the game.

Friday, October 24, 2014

As Muslims usher in the Islamic new year of
1436 Hijrah tomorrow, calls have emerged for the community to discard
differences of opinion and forge greater unity.

They have also been reminded to adhere strictly to the Quran and Sunnah in keeping with the decree of Prophet Muhammad.

Two of the Muslim leaders who have been quoted as giving such advice
are Ahmad Fazrin Yahaya, chief executive officer of the Association of
Malaysian Muslim Intellectuals (Ilmu), and Mohammad Fazril Mohd Saleh,
president of National Association of Muslim Students Malaysia (PKPIM).

Ahmad Fazrin advised Muslims to adhere strictly to the Quran and Sunnah
before the differences of opinion turned into a cancer against Muslim
unity.

He said the differences of opinion in religion arose when Muslims
banked on logic without making the Quran and Sunnah as the basis for
resolving problems.

As such, he said, the authorities responsible should proactively
promote religious programmes and hold comprehensive discussions on the
confusion arising from the differences of opinion so as to enhance the
religious literacy of Muslims.

"Do not wait for something to happen before issuing a statement.
Instead, Muslims must continue to be educated in order to emphasise the
importance of studying religion so as to be always on the right path of
Islam," he told Bernama.

Ahmad Fazrin said the differences of opinion must be managed so that
every issue linked to religion could be resolved more effectively.

Mohammad Fazril, meanwhile, said Muslims in the country should apply
the concept of community consensus in dealing with current issues.

He said Muslims should act more wisely when confronted with complex
issues involving religious sensitivities and, at the same time, resolve
them without conflict.

"We have to solve problems in the right way according to Islamic law so
that people of other religions do not have a negative perception of
Islam," he said.

Mohammad Fazril advised youths to equip themselves with religious
knowledge to ensure that they were not easily influenced by the changes
in the globalised world.

This year's Maal Hijrah carries the theme 'Unity, the Pulse of National Transformation'.

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Petrol subsidy rationalisation system is still under study and would
be implemented using the MyKad, said Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad
Maslan.

Ahmad said on Thursday that the high-income group would have to pay
RM2.58 per litre for RON95 while the low-income group would still
continue to pay at per current RM2.30 per litre rate.

The rich will have to pay the full market price of RON95 petrol
beginning June next year while the low-income group will continue to
enjoy the current subsidised rate.

"For the middle class, some will still enjoy the subsidised rate," he
said in a press conference after the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and
Budget 2015 briefing for officers from Rural and Regional Development
Ministry and agencies.

He said that it did not make sense for those driving luxury cars to
enjoy a subsidy of 75 litres of petrol while the low-income group 7.5
litres for each refueling.

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Malaysians of the Hindu faith Wednesday celebrate Deepavali in a joyous ambience by holding religious events and open houses.

The highlight of the celebration in the national capital is the
Deepavali open house hosted by MIC at Dewan Merdeka, Putra World Trade
Centre (PWTC) here, which was attended by Prime Minister Datuk Seri
Najib Tun Razak and wife Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor.

The beating of drums and flutes accompanied the arrival of Najib, who
is also Umno President and Barisan Nasional Chairman at about 10.15am.

On hand to receive him were MIC President Datuk Seri G. Palanivel,
his deputy Datuk Seri Dr S. Subramaniam and other party leaders.

Najib, who was in a cream-coloured kurta, the traditional Indian
attire, later cut a cake together with other guests of honour before
leaving the function at 11.10am.

Speaking to reporters later, Najib said the Deepavali open house
being held annually in the country could create a cordial atmosphere
among each and every Malaysians.

"Many can get to meet their friends of the Hindu faith and we must
enhance further the feelings of goodwill and harmony among Malaysians,"
he said.

He described this year's event as very joyous and in accordance to tradition.
Meanwhile MIC secretary-general A. Prakash Roa said it was a unique
feature that all races could celebrate together whenever there was a
festival in the country.

"Not only Deepavali, during Chinese New year, Hari Raya Aidilfitri,
all can join in to sample the food and understand the culture of all the
different races in the country and this harmonious atmosphere must be
sustained," he said.

Foreigners who visited the open house also get to enjoy the auspicious festival.

Czech Republic Ambassador Rudolf Hykl said the Deepavali celebration
in Malaysia, that was participated by all Malaysians from multi-racial
backgrounds, was very interesting.

"The Indian community is one of the largest communities in this
country, which is an ethnically rich nation. So for me it is important
to have this experience," he said.

Meanwhile another well-wisher Ghazal Nabil from Syria said the
festivity was very special because it was celebrated by all the
communities while the food served could be savoured by everyone.

"I'm interested in the racial diversity here, I want to know as much as I can while I'm staying here," he added.

When officers of the Selangor Islamic Department (Jais) are seen at a
temple or church, more often than not, the first thoughts on people's
mind would be - no, not another raid.

This perception arose probably due to the raids carried out by Jais
in seizing bibles from the Bible Society of Malaysia last year.

Last month, however, the presence of the officers at several non-Muslim places of worship were greeted with open arms.

The visits at the Sri Maha Maryaman temple in Shah Alam, the Samadhi
Vihara Buddha temple in Shah Alam and the Syrian Orthodox Church in
Klang were part of a Jais programme to expose participants pursuing a
course on comparative religions to other faiths.

“It is the first time that we organised something like this. We want
the participants to know for themselves how devotees of other religions
observed their faiths.

The programme was attended by 50 participants ranging from dakwah
officials, college lecturers, teachers, government servants and
committee members of mosques.

Basori said Jais had conducted five series this year of the
comparative religions course but the first time it included the visits
to temples and churches.

He said for some of the participants, the visit was the first time in
their lives that they had stepped into a non-Muslim place of worship.

He noted that Muslims were allowed to walk into a church or temple as long as they did not sway from their faith in Islam.

“Muslims must strengthen their own faith and understanding of their religion before visiting other places.

"But the important thing is not to let differences of religion be a barrier in having relations with others,” he said.

“There is no problem if you want to learn. Organise the visit properly so no misunderstanding will occur,” he added.

Basori said during the time of the prophets in Madinah, Muslims and Christians lived together in harmony.

“Why can’t Muslims follow what has been practised by our prophets long ago?,” he said.
He believed that both sides might have misconceptions because of the lack of understanding of one another’s religions.

Basori added that all religions are the same in that they only taught
good – they did not teach people to steal, consume alcohol and lie.

“It is not right to put down other faiths,” he said.

He said non-Muslims could visit mosques although they have to observe the rules.
“This would be similar to how other places of worship have their own rules as well,” he said.

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

PAS is worried that after the ‘I Want to Touch a Dog’ campaign, Muslims will be invited to participate in a sex fest next.

Its Federal Territories deputy youth chief Nurul Islam Mohamed Yusof
said there was a valid reason for concern, especially after events like
‘Topless Friday’ and ‘Octoberfest’ were organised in the country
recently.

“We are worried that one day someone will organise a ‘sex and condom’
campaign, based on the rationale of safe sex and preventing the spread
of HIV/AIDS.

“Our stand against such events is because we consider it a threat to
the religious and cultural values practiced in this country, and not
because we are paranoid,” Nurul Islam said in a statement on Tuesday.

He said Muslims had a responsibility to preserve the sanctity of
Islam in a multicultural society like Malaysia, and said more thought
must be given before organising events that clearly serve to diminish
religious values.

“Muslims are advised to increase their knowledge of Islam and its
appreciation for the self and their families, as well as the society
around them.

“We hope programmes like the dog-petting event can be prevented sooner in the future,” he added.

He said the Muslim world must continue to emphasise that they are
peaceful nations and a source of global prosperity despite the recent
negative reports involving certain Muslim countries.

“Our potential is enormous if we organise and get our act together,”
he said when addressing participants at the ADFIMI-SME Bank
International Development Forum 2014 at a hotel here on Tuesday.

The forum, attended by financing professionals, policy makers and
market players, was organised by the ADFIMI (Association of National
Development Finance Institutions In Member Countries Of The Islamic
Development Bank) and SME Bank.

Najib, who is also Finance Minister, said while there remain
obstacles to the development of the Muslim population, Islamic countries
have generally made remarkable progress.

“Many Muslim countries have transformed themselves in the past decades to become hubs and sources of prosperity.

“These include in the areas of logistics, oil and gas, services and Islamic finance.

“This is why we need to continuously explore working together to
challenge ourselves and develop revolutionary methods on how
entrepreneurs can leverage on each other to contribute significantly to
the nation’s economic growth,” he said.

Najib pointed out that member nations of the Organisation of Islamic
Cooperation (OIC) have become a significant group in the global
economy.

“The total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of OIC countries has grown 25.3% over the period between 2008 and 2012.

“From US$7.5 trillion in 2008, it reached US$9.4 trillion in 2012,”
he said, quoting statistics from the 2013 report of the Statistical
Economic and Social Research and Training Centre for Islamic Countries.

Some politicians in Perak are believed to be financed with proceeds
earned from illegal gambling centres in the state, said Home Minister
Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

He said although the politicians concerned were not directly
involved, they were believed funded by the illegal gambling centres
namely in - Kuala Sepetang, Bagan Panchor and Pulau Kuala Sangga - to
carry out their political activities.

"Based on information I received, there are politicians involved. If
they want proof, the police have the evidence," Ahmad Zahid told
reporters here on Monday.

He said this when asked to comment on newspaper reports on gambling
activities in the three areas, which were said to be hard for the
authorities to penetrate.

In this regard, he said, the political parties concerned should take
action against members who were funded by proceeds from illegal gambling
activities.

Earlier, Ahmad Zahid held a meeting with members of Motorcycle Clubs
nationwide in conjunction with the Registrar of Societies' carnival to
be held next month.

Monday, October 20, 2014

Gerakan has suspended Johor delegate Tan Lai Soon over his speech
that implied that Indians, Chinese and Malays are "pendatang" or
immigrants.

The party's central working committee, after an emergency meeting on
Monday that was called in response to complaints by 14 party members,
decided that Tan would be suspended and has been issued a show cause
letter.

At Gerakan’s 43rd National Delegates Conference on Sunday, Tan
chastised Umno members for calling Chinese and Indians "pendatang" and
said that Malays were no different as they came from Indonesia.

Tan said only the Orang Asli and natives in Sabah and Sarawak could be considered the original inhabitants of the land.

Gerakan deputy president Datuk Dr Cheah Soon Hai told reporters on Monday that the party condemned the remarks made by Tan.

"It is not the party's stand, we are all Malaysians and no Malaysian is a "pendatang" or an immigrant.
"All Malaysians that are born here are Malaysians. I think that if a
Malay called a Chinese "pendatang" it will hurt and vice versa," Cheah
said.

"We have taken note that Tan has retracted his remarks and apologised for it," said Cheah.
Tan will be given 14 days to respond to the show cause letter on why
he should not be expelled from the party in accordance with Article 17.2
of the party's constitution.

Cheah apologised to all Malaysians who have been hurt by Tan's remarks.

"We reiterate once again that Gerakan is a party of all races and we do not condone any remark that is un-Malaysian," he said.

"We call on all parties to cease making any accusation that will
further aggravate the situation. Gerakan has always uphold and will
continue to uphold the Federal Constitution and Rukunegara," he said.

"Instead of campaigning to touch a dog, it would be better if they campaigned about taking care of an orphan.

"The Prophet Muhammad once said that anyone who strokes the head of
an orphan would receive plenty of reward for each strand of hair
stroked.

"Instead of learning about how we should stroke a dog's back, why not
we learn how to cleanse our feet during wudhu (ablution) without taking
off the layer of clothing," Khalil, who is the son of PAS president
Datuk Seri Abdul Hadi Awang, said in a statement on Tuesday.

Suggesting that the "Touch a Dog" event on Sunday was a way for
Malaysians to de-stress from problems such as the fuel hike, Khalil said
Muslims should first learn how to hold and kiss the Hajar Aswad stone
in Kaabah before they thought about how to stroke a dog.

"There is an incident related in the Holy Quran about pet dogs. The
lesson from it is not for us to have dogs as pets, but for us to
acknowledge that dogs also played an important role in Islam's
struggle."

He added that Muslims' involvement with dogs went as far as feeding it
when hungry and not injuring it as it deserved to be treated as any of
God's creation.

Friday, October 17, 2014

Facebook users have slammed sex blogger Alvin Tan for claiming that
his former girlfriend Vivian Lee is now offering escort services.

Tan, who jumped bail to seek asylum in the United States, made the allegation in a Facebook posting on Thursday.

Lee has since hit out at him over the allegations and replied with a
scathing response titled "Dear Alvin Tan the Almighty", stating that it
was her "final act of love" as his allegation was "the last straw".

Facebook user Ivy Lam urged Lee to stop wasting her time by trying to get back Tan’s attention.

"Girl, don't waste your time on him. He is not facing his own
problems like a man. Well, if he was, he wouldn't have left you here to
face the music alone. Repent and get your own life. It's okay, we all
learn from mistakes," she commented.

Joyce Teo also urged Lee to move on with her life and learn from her mistakes.
"Dear Vivian, just move on with your life and learn from your
mistakes. Don't let others take advantage of you," commented Joyce.

"Alvin doesn't deserve to talk about love. Even if she did that, as a
friend or an ex-boyfriend, shouldn't you just guide her or care about
her? If this is the way you want to show your concern, which is to
humiliate her on Facebook, that’s pretty shameful," said netizen Ng Yang
Yang.

Adonis Plutus Alangre said advised Tan to be careful in the near future.
"Alvin, karma will eventually catch up with you and hopefully it
involves some bizarre accident. You don't actually use your brain that
much so it's considered as a waste of oxygen for the rest of us,"
Alangre wrote.

Ooi Keat Shang said that Tan was just bored in the United States and seeking attention with his Facebook post.

“Hides in the United States and he keeps posting updates on Facebook.
He is afraid that Malaysia will forget him. Let him 'enjoy' his freedom
alone in the United States,” said Shang.

Yakvb Tvfail felt Alvin was displaying a pattern of chronic narcissistic behaviour and urged him to seek professional help.

Adrian Amalraj said that he has never seen such a “crap” person in his life.
“In my opinion, he should protect and secure the girl he once loved even if they are separated,” said Amalraj.

Malaysia won a non-permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), taking 187 out of the total 192 votes.

The voting took place at the United Nations General Assembly hall to fill five vacancies among the Security Council's non-permanent membership.

Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Anifah Aman, was at the hall to observe the voting process.

The new members will take up their seats on Jan 1, 2015 and will serve on the Council until 31 December 2016.

The five seats available for election in 2014, distributed regionally, will be: one seat for the African Group (currently held by Rwanda); one seat for Asia-Pacific Group (currently held by the Republic of Korea);

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

The Government has no plans to privatise Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB), the Dewan Rakyat was told Wednesday.

"If anyone has heard that KTMB is to be privatised, I w

Deputy Finance Minister Datuk Ahmad Maslan said the Government was
instead striving to transform KTMB's operations and services and
strengthen its financial position.

"Hopefully, the transformation will enable make KTMB profitable," he
said when replying to a supplementary question from Datuk Dr Abdul
Latiff Ahmad (BN-Mersing) during question time.

The original question came from Lee Boon Chye (PKR-Gopeng) who had
wanted to know the financial performance of KTMB after being
incorporated in 1992.

Ahmad said several initiatives had been adopted to restore the
railway company's financial position through the KTMB Transformation
Laboratory that was established with the help of the Performance
Management and Delivery Unit (Pemandu).

The initiatives included a review of passenger fares and cargo
charges, rescheduling of the time table or termination of unprofitable
services and a focus on maintenance, he said.

"The implementation of these initiatives is expected to enable KTMB
to garner a profit of RM33.1mil in 2015. With a better financial
position, KTMB will be able to continue with its services in a
sustainable manner without having to depend on financial aid from the
Government," he said.

He said several factors contributed to the losses suffered by KTMB,
such as low fares, high cost of operations involving maintenance of
wagons, cost of electricity and diesel consumption, and cost of
manpower.

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

The Malaysians who went to the Middle East to
fight and die for the cause of Islam did not die as martyrs but is a
common death and tantamount to meaningless death, said Kelantan Mufti Dato Muhamad Shukri Muhamad.

He added that while many believed that going to another country to
die in the name of Islam, whether or not a person who died a martyr is
determined by the country they were killed in.

"In my opinion when a person joins an extremist group like Islamic
State (IS) and died while fighting for such groups had a common death
like any other accidents," he told reporters at the sidelines of the
Kelantan State Legislative Assembly meeting here on Tuesday.

Muhammad Shukri was asked to comment on Malaysians who died fighting
in the Middle East after joining militant Islamic State of Iraq and the
Levant were hailed as martyrs.

He said martyrdom must first be recognised by the Islamic country
where the person died before it is also recognised by the country of
origin.

"In the first place persons who joins an extremist groups cannot be
recognised a Muslim fighter and the basic consideration for martyrdom is
when the person dies fighting a hostile Kafir (infidel) and dies in the
process of freeing his country from aggressors who intend to invade
their country's sovereignty and religion," he added.

Wisma Putra was reported in a statement released on June 25, confirmed that a total of 15 Malaysians had died in Syria under IS.

The panel lead by Justice Arifin Zakaria dismissed the attempt to
nullify the Attorney General-Chambers (ACG) to appoint Shafee, finding
no reason to interfere.

"The proper mode of challenge is by judicial review," said Justice Arifin Tuesday.

This was Anwar's third attempt to disqualify the veteran lawyer from leading the prosecution team in the main appeal.

In the application filed on Feb 27, Anwar stated that Muhammad Shafee
was not a fit and proper person to lead the prosecution appeal team
following his being fined by the Advocates and Solicitors Disciplinary
Board.

However, the five-man Federal Court panel disagreed, saying the fine did not disqualify him as a lawyer.

"The AGC found him a fit and fine person to represent the prosecution.

"We are of a firm view Shafee as a prosecutor would not compromise the integrity of proceedings," said Justice Arifin.

Anwar was represent by lawyer Tommy Thomas, while Shafee acted for himself.

Anwar had first challenged the legality of Muhammad Shafee’s
appointment by the Attorney-General by fiat (authorisation) under
Section 376 (3) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC).

However, this was dismissed by the Federal Court on Nov 20, last year.

His second application to disqualify Muhammad Shafee, based on a
statutory declaration (SD) by former Kuala Lumpur Criminal Investigation
Department chief Datuk Mat Zain Ibrahim, was also dismissed by Federal
Court on Feb 11, this year.

These cross appeals were in regards to the main appeal involving Anwar's second sodomy case.
Anwar is applying to the Federal Court to acquit himself of his sodomy conviction by the Court of Appeal.

Concurrently, the prosecutor sought to increase his jail sentence from the current five years.
Anwar, 67, was acquitted by the High Court on Jan 9, 2012 for
allegedly sodomising Mohd Saiful Bukhari Azlan, his former aide, at Desa
Damansara Condominium in Bukit Damansara on June 26, 2008.

However, the Court of Appeal overturned the acquittal and sentenced Anwar to five years in prison for the offence.

Monday, October 13, 2014

Any attempt to question the status of Chinese schools in the country
must stop now that Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has given
his reassurance of its place in the country’s education system, said
leaders.

United Chinese School Teachers’ Association of Malaysia (Jiao Zong)
president Ong Chiow Chuen said Najib’s reassurance, which was made
during his speech at the 61st MCA assembly, proved that vernacular
schools had its place in the education system.

“With this assurance, the community does not have to worry about this anymore,” he said.
Condemning those who had made use of the issue to stir up racial
sentiment for their own political gain, Ong urged Najib to take stern
action against them.

Najib’s reassurance had come in the wake of a call by Petaling Jaya
Utara Umno deputy chief Mohamad Azli Mohemed Saad for his party’s coming
general assembly to discuss the possibility of abolishing Chinese
primary schools.

MCA deputy president Datuk Dr Wee Ka Siong said Najib had in his speech endorsed Chinese education in the country.

“If the Barisan Nasional chairman (Najib) has endorsed this, it is a non-issue,” he said.
Najib’s call for MCA to close its ranks, he said, was also “wise and
timely”, adding that people were “fed up” with internal conflict.

“A united MCA will not only benefit the party but subsequently
improve the general election results,” said Dr Wee, who is also Minister
in the Prime Minister’s Department.

A central delegate from Subang, Low Seow Hwee, warned those
threatening to close Chinese primary schools not to test MCA’s patience.

“We (MCA) also have feelings. Do not push beyond our limit. If you
want to close Chinese schools, you have to close MCA first,” said Low
when delivering his motion of thanks on the party president’s speech.

MCA central committee member Datuk Ti Lian Ker said he took his hat
off to Najib for taking a strong stance on Chinese education.

“He also encouraged the Chinese to be fluent in Bahasa Malaysia, which is welcomed,” he said.
Welcoming Najib’s statement, Gerakan president Datuk Mah Siew Keong
said it “confirmed the position of Chinese and Tamil schools as part of
the Malaysian education system”.

He said the call for MCA to “move towards the right direction” also
served as a reminder to other Barisan component parties, including
Gera­kan, to do the same.

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

There will be an unscheduled water supply disruption in Selangor from
9am to 9pm Thursday, Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) has
announced.

The disruption will affect the districts of Sepang, Hulu Langat, Petaling and Gombak, Syabas said in a Facebook statement.

The reason for the disruption is an emergency maintenance done by
Konsortium ABASS Sdn Bhd at the Sungai Semenyih water treatment plant.

"Simultaneously, Syabas will also be carrying out maintenance and upgrading work in 4 locations within the area.

"All of these maintenance works has been approved by the National Water Services Commission (SPAN)," said the statement.

The public who would like to get more information on the specific
areas which may face disruption can contact their customer service at
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Tuesday, October 7, 2014

The Government is still mulling whether to amend the controversial Sedition Act 1948 or to abolish it altogether.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nancy Shukri said the Government was studying ways to address weaknesses of the Act.

"Prime Minister (Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak) has already committed to
(abolish the Act) but at the same time, I hope you appreciate the
current situation.

"The process to create a new law is going on, and so is the
discussion on whether we can amend the Sedition Act or draft a law that
will complement it," said Nancy in reply to Opposition leader Datuk Seri
Anwar Ibrahim in Parliament Tuesday.

Anwar had asked why the Sedition Act was still being used when Najib had committed its abolition.
He also said the continued use of the "draconian" law was against Najib's promise.

Nancy said the only reason the Sedition Act was being was because
there was no other act to deal with those with the tendency to incite
and create chaos in the country.

She also stressed the Government practised the separation of powers and thus would not step into the shoes of others.

"The one responsible for this process is the Attorney-General's Chambers, so as the Executive, we do not get involved.

"They are the ones who have the power to charge, prosecute or drop the charges," said Nancy.

She said the Government was committed to protecting Malaysians and
action would be taken against anyone disrupting the peace and harmony of
the nation.
"No one is above the law," she added.

The country's average household income may have risen by some 10% in
the last five years but there are still two million families living on
less than RM3,000 a month, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department
Datuk Seri Abdul Wahid Omar told Parliament Tuesday.

"Although the Government believes we are on track, it is still is not
comfortable," he said in reply to a question raised by Datuk Irmohizam
Ibrahim (BN-Kuala Selangor).

He said that average household income had seen a positive rise from
2009 to 2014, but 28.7% of families still survived on less than RM3,000 a
month.

He added that the household income for some 40% in the lowest income
level had recorded a rise, from an average of RM1,440 in 2009 to RM1,847
in 2012 and RM2,313 in 2014.

The Government would continue to assist those in the lower-income
group and ease their burden via programmes such as BR1M, Kedai 1Malaysia
and affordable housing, he said.

"One crucial area is ensuring continued economic growth, which will
result in improved job opportunities for the rakyat to better their
income levels," he said.

Earlier, Abdul Wahid told lawmakers the Statistics Department had
carried out surveys in 2009, 2012 and 2014 on household income levels,
based on United Nations criteria.

He noted that median household income rose an average of 8% annually
for the past five years which was above the annual inflation rate of
2.3% for the same period.

He said that average monthly household income in 2009 was RM4,025, RM5,000 in 2012 and RM5,919 for 2014.

The giant waves rose higher than lampposts along the promenade, drenching the roads with sea water.
Pedestrians were seen recording and snapping photographs as vehicles hit by the white foamy breakers inched along.

Penang Municipal Council (MPPP) work
ers and bulldozers were deployed
to both locations to clear sand that was washed onto the roads.

At the Esplanade seafront, MPPP worker S. Prakash, 27, slipped and
fell when a large wave hit him as he was clearing the pathway filled
with sand.

“Throughout my five years with the MPPP, I’ve never seen such huge waves.

“I panicked when I saw how high they were,” said Prakash who did not suffer any injuries.
Over in Batu Ferringhi, the tidal waves wreaked havoc at the food
court in Miami Beach, destroying the tiled floor, tables and chairs.

No one was injured in the incident as most of the stalls were closed yesterday for Hari Raya Haji.
A spokesman from the Meteorological Department said the strong winds
over Thailand had caused the huge waves to hit the northern states of
Malaysia.

According to the department’s website, the strong winds had caused
waves of up to 3.5m high over the waters off Perlis, Kedah, Penang, Miri
in Sarawak, the west coast of Sabah and Labuan.
The strong winds and rough seas are expected to last until Sunday.

The department warned that current conditions would be dangerous to small crafts, recreational sea activities and sea sports.

Aftermath: A council worker checking the damage sustained after waves hit the food court at Miami Beach.

State Local Government, Traffic Management and Flood Mitigation
Committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow meanwhile said the state government was
not evading responsibility by blaming high rainfall for the recent
flash floods.

“We acknowledge that our drainage systems were unable to cope with
the intensity of rainfall in the two hours from 8pm to 10pm on Friday,”
Chow told a press conference.

Thursday, October 2, 2014

The upcoming Budget 2014 will ease any difficulties created by the
recent fuel subsidy reduction, resulting in a 20 sen increase in RON95
petrol and diesel prices, said Datuk Seri Hasan Malek.

"Wait for the budget. We will address any burdens through several
measures, including increasing BR1M," the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives
and Consumerism Minister told reporters after launching the Malaysian
Intellectual Awards ceremony here Thursday.

PKR is working to strap a leash on Azmin Ali barely a week into his job as Selangor menteri besar.
Treading on egg shells between governmental duties and his
political party’s demands, Azmin was apparently irked by PKR de facto
leader Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s hankering for the former to use his
position to justify Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim’s ouster.

An aide claimed Azmin had wanted to focus on running a tight ship,
rather than jumping into another political fray as soon as entering
office.

“He has, in some way, now agreed why Khalid was pulling his best
efforts to keep party politics away from the office. Too much political
bureaucracy will create a noose around his neck. Azmin does not want
that.

“My boss wants to lead the administration well. He wants to do
better than his predecessor,” the aide said, referring to Khalid’s
rocky tenure as menteri besar.

Anwar recently urged Azmin to “expose” the alleged discrepancies
in the RM30 billion deal between the state and the Federal Government,
made to restructure Selangor’s water industry and mitigate its perennial
shortage of supply.

He also demanded Azmin review the construction of the RM2 billion
Kinrara-Damansara Expressway. The two projects were used as prime
catalysts to boot Khalid from office.

The sultan of Selangor last week described Khalid as an excellent
administrator, in a speech that also blamed PKR for prompting the
state’s leadership crisis.

“This is another point that Azmin has to look into. He would not
jump the gun against someone endorsed by the Sultan as capable.

“Since PKR was at loggerheads with the ruler on the menteri besar
candidate controversy, Azmin wants to build a cordial relationship with
the palace after everything that has happened,” the aide said.

Azmin had chosen to be quiet on the sidelines and has turned his
attention to the delegation of work among his new state executive
councillors. He is expected to announce their portfolios today.

“He is busy with work. At least, Anwar should not be hasty in
coercing Azmin to justify the removal of Khalid,” the aide claimed.

“Anwar used to heap praises about Khalid’s administration. Back
then, Khalid was perfect. And now, he is somewhat desperate to
substantiate the accusations against his former comrade,” said Fuad.

At the same time, Fuad suspected that Anwar was working his way to
dictate how Azmin should run the state government. He said it was
another opportunity for Anwar to be in the limelight.
“Anwar just wants to show Azmin who’s boss. The man still wants to
assert his authority. Anwar is now akin to an old, retired gladiator
who wants to wield the sword because he likes to be in the view of
spectators.”

Another analyst said if Azmin let himself be led by others, it
would only prove that he was incapable as a leader and, worse, inferior
than Khalid.

National Professors’ Council political cluster head Professor
Datuk Dr Mustafa Ishak said as a menteri besar, Azmin was more
answerable to the sultan and the people, rather than Anwar.

“The menteri besar must use his wisdom in asserting leadership
qualities. He should be professional and prioritise the task at hand,
instead of looking for mistakes supposedly committed by the previous
administration. Does he want to be a better leader than Khalid?”

Mustafa added that if Azmin were to review the agreements made by
Khalid’s office, it should be carried out with a sense of responsibility
for the people.

“You cannot just scrap all the projects set by Khalid. The people’s
interest will have to come first. He has to see whether the said
projects are beneficial to the people. He has to be his own man and not
be influenced by the need for political mileage, especially in his first
days as menteri besar.”

Dalbinder Singh Gill, a law student and nephew of the late Karpal
Singh, was questioned by police for allegedly making seditious
statements pertaining to bumiputra rights and the monarchy on his
Facebook page, an online news portal reported.

According to the report, Dalbinder surrendered himself at the
Northeast Police District Headquarters in Jalan Patani, Penang at
10.45pm, Tuesday for questioning.

He told the news portal that he was bailed at around 1.30am, Wednesday.

“I was told that it was the police who lodged a report against me, prompting them to detain me,” he is reported to have said.

Dalbinder said that authorities seized his iPhone and iPad to help with the investigations.

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Tolerating intolerance

Intolerance is rampant at every level and in all age groups of the society, but it is more visible amongst the younger generation as our youth can be seen losing their altitude of patience over petty issues. We seriously need to think over it as what we are going to inculcate in them, which may help them seek success in future. Will it be tolerance or intolerance?

By Samra Arshad

International Conference "Expose War Crimes – Criminalise War"

“Wars increasingly involve the killings of innocent people and are therefore, abhorrent and criminal. Killings in war are as criminal as the killings within societies in times of peace. Since killings in peace time are subject to the domestic law of crime, killings in war must likewise be subject to the international law of crimes. This should be so irrespective of whether these killings in war are authorised or permitted by domestic laws.”